History changed on October 4, 1957, when the Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik I. The world's first artificial satellite was about the size of a basketball, weighed only 183 pounds, and took about 98 minutes to orbit the Earth on its elliptical path. However, even though the launching of Sputnik changed everything from politics to our economy... it had a huge impact on our schooling system and the way education is looked upon and valued.
Soon after the launching of Sputnik, the United States launched their own version called Explorer 1. Explorer 1 was launched on January 31st, 1958 and started the "space-race." This in turn built tension between the two countries that had already been established. For years the US and the USSR had been undergoing energy battles. These energy competitions linked with the space race fueled the Cold War to a different level.
What we believed before:
Before the launching of Sputnik, whether it was arrogance or ignorance, the United States in general believed that they were eons and light years above others in the educational realm. Although school was thought of as important, and everyone was expected to go, it certainly wasn't in depth, and if you didn't go to school you could still be very profitable and prosperous in life.
Education in life was thought of as an "extra" according to the thoughts and beliefs of the middle class which made up most of the United States at the time. If there was work to be done on the farm, or around the house, it was acceptable to not go to school.
Before the launch of Sputnik a curriculum had just been developed to go back to basics. They wanted to go back to basic fundamentals, go back to old school text books that taught basic principles, and overall and most importantly go back to past practices.
What we believed after:
After the launch of Sputnik, a red light went off and alarms sounded. Suddenly, for the first time, we realized we might be behind in the educational fields particularly in math and science. So, naturally, within months a new curriculum was built starting with math and science and slowly permeating into every subject.
Public and private funds were allocated after this to establish programs to develop the talents of students who were gifted gifted in our country. In 1958, the National Defense Education Act was passed to support the development of math, science and a foreign language talent. (1)
From this came the launching of the Gifted and Talented program to excel the "smarter" students into stardom and scientific breakthroughs.
After Sputnik, learning in the classroom changed tremendously. The curriculum was not based just solely on the textbook anymore, but readings, articles, films, and slides were used to better emphasize learning and bring interactive tools into the classroom. This was the first time technology was introduced to the classroom via a curriculum.
How we sometimes believe the old way:
Education in America is something that is viewed as extremely valuable and important. However, with new guidelines being enforced by our government (NCLB) and restricted amounts of money for art and musical programs, many schools are being forced to make budget cuts. These budget cuts arise from citizens (usually elderly) who don't want to give up their tax dollars to pay for the school.
It is a common misconception by the people of the United States that we are a superior country in the world, and we don't need the educational "extras". However, it is not the case when it comes to education. According to UNESCO, a world-wide company that does statistics on education, we are in fact in the middle when it comes to education globally. These statistics come from other statistics including graduation rates, content, structure, test scores, and educational importance to the culture.
SPUTNIK
The History Of:
History changed on October 4, 1957, when the Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik I. The world's first artificial satellite was about the size of a basketball, weighed only 183 pounds, and took about 98 minutes to orbit the Earth on its elliptical path. However, even though the launching of Sputnik changed everything from politics to our economy... it had a huge impact on our schooling system and the way education is looked upon and valued.
Soon after the launching of Sputnik, the United States launched their own version called Explorer 1. Explorer 1 was launched on January 31st, 1958 and started the "space-race." This in turn built tension between the two countries that had already been established. For years the US and the USSR had been undergoing energy battles. These energy competitions linked with the space race fueled the Cold War to a different level.
What we believed before:
Before the launching of Sputnik, whether it was arrogance or ignorance, the United States in general believed that they were eons and light years above others in the educational realm. Although school was thought of as important, and everyone was expected to go, it certainly wasn't in depth, and if you didn't go to school you could still be very profitable and prosperous in life.
Education in life was thought of as an "extra" according to the thoughts and beliefs of the middle class which made up most of the United States at the time. If there was work to be done on the farm, or around the house, it was acceptable to not go to school.
Before the launch of Sputnik a curriculum had just been developed to go back to basics. They wanted to go back to basic fundamentals, go back to old school text books that taught basic principles, and overall and most importantly go back to past practices.
What we believed after:
After the launch of Sputnik, a red light went off and alarms sounded. Suddenly, for the first time, we realized we might be behind in the educational fields particularly in math and science. So, naturally, within months a new curriculum was built starting with math and science and slowly permeating into every subject.
Public and private funds were allocated after this to establish programs to develop the talents of students who were gifted gifted in our country. In 1958, the National Defense Education Act was passed to support the development of math, science and a foreign language talent. (1)
From this came the launching of the Gifted and Talented program to excel the "smarter" students into stardom and scientific breakthroughs.
After Sputnik, learning in the classroom changed tremendously. The curriculum was not based just solely on the textbook anymore, but readings, articles, films, and slides were used to better emphasize learning and bring interactive tools into the classroom. This was the first time technology was introduced to the classroom via a curriculum.
How we sometimes believe the old way:
Education in America is something that is viewed as extremely valuable and important. However, with new guidelines being enforced by our government (NCLB) and restricted amounts of money for art and musical programs, many schools are being forced to make budget cuts. These budget cuts arise from citizens (usually elderly) who don't want to give up their tax dollars to pay for the school.
It is a common misconception by the people of the United States that we are a superior country in the world, and we don't need the educational "extras". However, it is not the case when it comes to education. According to UNESCO, a world-wide company that does statistics on education, we are in fact in the middle when it comes to education globally. These statistics come from other statistics including graduation rates, content, structure, test scores, and educational importance to the culture.
online credit:
http://units.aps.org/units/fed/newsletters/apr98/sput.cfm
http://history.nasa.gov/sputnik/
http://www.uis.unesco.org/TEMPLATE/pdf/ged/2006/GED2006.pdf
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_war
http://units.aps.org/units/fed/newsletters/apr98/sput.cfm
video credit:
http://www.youtube.com/sputnikvid
book credit:
(1) Colarusso, Ron: Special Education for all Teachers, Kendall Hunt Publishing Company, 1997.__